Regus to look at varsities, malls for expansion

Regus, the Luxembourg-headquartered business centre operator or a workplace provider, on Tuesday announced the opening of two centres in Bengaluru taking the total count in India to 50 centres.

To strengthen its presence further, the company plans to tap opportunities in universities, malls and even airports.

“We shall look to set up business centres at universities, malls and libraries too as we have done in many other markets,” Harsh Lamba, country manager, Regus told reporters.

The company has looked to popularise the concept of a so-called “third place”.

Explaining the concept, he said that the first place where a person would work in the normal course, is the office, and the second place is the home. “The third place is a solution wherein a person has the third option, of working from a business centre of Regus,” he said.

Regus is bullish on entrepreneurs and start-ups. “We are like an incubation centre for many,” Lamba said.

The firm thus has a virtual product which it claims is most suitable for startups and entrepreneurs. This, the firm said, allows the company to have a business address, local phone number and virtual assistant too. Thus, anyone trying to contact the firm gets a feeling that the company has an office.

As the video-conferencing provider in the world, the firm has been trying to tap the new-age firms as much as possible. The company claims even Twitter works out of Regus facilities across some 13 countries.

The company is looking at airports in the country as a Third Place too. It has already done so at the three airports of London. The company claimed that it is in talks with airports and their managements for setting up such facilities in India.

Regus counts about half the Fortune 500 companies among its clients. Dolby had started at a Regus facility and then moved out to their own office when they needed to set up a sound studio, Lamba said.

The need for flexibility and smarter workspaces is always a lot more when you have to work at odd hours with colleagues in other parts of the world. This growing demand for alternate office spaces and flexible work hours is expected to play a key role in the future expansion plans for Bengaluru, the company said.